A perceptual device: Locus Moment

Author

Hartmann, Gunnar

Date

2001

Advisor

Brown, David P.

Degree

Master of Architecture

Abstract

As one travels about the Houston landscape, one is often bewildered by the rampant growth of spaces and their casual uses. Houston's growth over 100 years has produced a suburban metropolis that searches for its identity between temporary crowded spaces and empty lots. The traditional city remains in our minds as we experience a shriveled form of interior urbanism, primarily private and mostly exclusive. Rather than perceiving place as a physical environment, one encounters momentary conditions of place, the gathering of people.
Stimulated by vacancies and remnants, Locus Moment acts as a perceptual device. Vital for a moment, this event attempts to shape our understanding of these vacancies. As Locus Moment remains in the mind as an afterimage, one is encouraged to search for the latent potential that exists within the Houston landscape.